Fiat 124 Spider

José Luís Afonso vence categoria A

José Luís Afonso/Luís Afonso, em Austin Six Tourner, de 1928, foram os vencedores da categoria A (carros mais antigos) da 24.ª Volta à Madeira Classic Rally, que terminou sábado no Funchal. O JM havia noticiado que esta dupla havia sido 2.ª classificada, quando afinal venceu a referida categoria, à frente de João Noronha/Armanda Noronha, em MG TA, de 1937. Na 3.ª posição ficaram Gonçalo Pereira/António Gil, em Fiat 509 A Spider, de 1926, isto na classificação para as “máquinas” construídas até 1948. A prova em 2011 reuniu perto de 40 equipas que, em três dias, percorreram 400 quilómetros pelas estradas madeira. O 1.º dia foi reservado ao Prólogo de Abertura, em plena baixa do Funchal, no 2.º dia a “caravana” saiu da Ponta do Sol, rumou ao Porto Moniz e terminou nem Câmara de Lobos, para no sábado os concorrentes saírem de Machico em direcção a Santana, finalizando o evento no Funchal. Para José Luís Afonso «foi bom vencer Volta à ilha», destacando o «tempo muito quente, mas mesmo assim o carro (Austin Six Tourner) manteve-se bem em termos da mecânica». Pelo erro na troca dos dois primeiros classificados da categoria A, apresentamos as nossas desculpas aos visados e aos leitores do JM.

Curbside Classic: 1974 Fiat 124 Sport Spider: My Dad's Last Toy

Those 124s were (and are) beautiful cars, sleek and simple. But they weren’t the only Fiat convertibles to grace our shores. Keep an eye out for the 850 Spyders, those pocket-sized, rear-engined open cars that competed in the junior leagues with Sprites and Midgets from Old Blighty. Then there’s the rarest of ‘em all, the Fiat 1500 Cabriolet. It didn’t have so much style, looking like a sedan with the roof whacked off. It wasn’t very fast, either. But it had a five-speed, a rarity in the early ’70s, and a folding top that worked like a charm. It was a one-handed, five-second task to raise the top and lock it down.

I could have done worse, much worse, for my first car. Too bad they’re all gone to rust by now.

Back to the 124— I’d wager that the little chrome hook on the trunk was meant to secure a tonneau cover, no?

the picture is my dad’s ’74 which he bought new. he also had the spider 2000 with fuel injection which he bought new in ’79. the ’74 is the car that got me interested in cars. it had an aluminum engine, 5 speed short throw gearbox, 4 wheel independent suspension and 4 wheel disk brakes at a time when sports cars had solid rear axles and 4 on the floor. ours had the the real wooden steering wheel in addition to the real wooden dash. the wipers had variable speed control on a rheostat like a dimmer switch. if it wasn’t raining, i pretty much always kept the top down. we kept wool blankets for our laps in the trunk. the trunk was so small that my mom had to lay the grocery bags on their side.

when i was about 20 and driving the ’79, some fool in a z28 pulled up to me at the light and started revving his engine. i took off into the residential neighborhood that i knew better than he did and led him towards the nearby school (it was after hours). he was quickly gaining on me in the straightaway. just before the speed bump i down shifted and went over it at about 25mph. he probably hit it at about 60. i heard the camaro bottom out hard and my passenger just couldn’t stop laughing. finally he caught his breath and just said “sparks… sparks everywhere.”

btw, the hook is to hold the cover that goes over the folded top. there were no horizontal plastic pieces on the 5 mph bumpers.

My first great “Car Mistake” was buying one of these in 1980. While a joy to drive (when it ran that is) it was a real maintenance nightmare. About six months after I bought it, Fiat pulled out of the US market so getting parts was a PITA. I once waited months to get a air meter for the fuel injection and finally had to get one from a junkyard.

Fiat 124 Sport 1968 Thru 1978: Coupe and Spider 1400 1600 1800 (Haynes Repair Manual):

Update:: Fiat 124 Spider Tote Bags Are Now Available!

1975-1982 FIAT 124 SPIDER Service Repair Manual: Cover years: 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982. This is t...

1975-1982 FIAT 124 SPIDER Service Repair Manual: Cover years: 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982. This is t...

1975-1982 FIAT 124 SPIDER Service Repair Manual: Cover years: 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982. This is t...

Fiat and Abarth 124 Spider and Coupe

Now available in this softbound edition.

Essential Fiat 124 Spider & Coupé, the cars and their story, 1966-85

Fiat 124 Spider Performance Portfolio 1966-1985

Popular Mechanics

Spider and coupe are low and pointed; sedan and wagon stand tall and square. Fiat's 124 sportsters share a 104-hp double- overhead-cam Four, and this same ...

Illustrated Directory of Sports Cars

Fiat 124 Spider Fiat 124 Spider, built from 1966 to 1982. Pininfarina Spiders built from 1982 to 1987 (data for original 1.4-litre) Built by: Fiat SpA, ...